Kingledoors facts for kids
Kingledoors is a group of small villages or settlements located in a beautiful valley in southern Scotland. You can find it near a place called Tweedsmuir in the area known as the Scottish Borders. The famous River Tweed flows through this valley.
Kingledoors is part of the parish of Drumelzier. It has natural borders: Mossfennan to the north, Polmood to the east, and the lands of Crook and Oliver to the south.
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What is Kingledoors?
The settlements of Kingledoors are found at the bottom of a long valley. A stream called Kingledoors Burn runs through this valley. Kingledoors is split into three main parts:
- Chapel Kingledoors is a small village at the lower end of the valley.
- Kingledoors Hope or Over Kingledoors is located at the higher end of the valley.
- Kingledoors Craig covers the lands to the north of the Kingledoors Burn.
A Glimpse into Kingledoors' History
Kingledoors was originally part of a larger area known as the barony of Oliver Castle. This land first belonged to a powerful family called the Clan Fraser.
However, things changed in 1306 when Sir Simon Fraser was killed. After this event, Kingledoors Craig became the property of the Hay family. The other parts of Kingledoors then went to the Fleming family.
The Chapel and the Peel Tower
Chapel Kingledoors gets its name from a special chapel dedicated to St Cuthbert. This chapel started as a simple hermit's cell, a quiet place where a religious person lived alone. Later, it became a chapel and was given to the monks of Melrose, along with the nearby lands then known as South Kingledoors.
There was also a Peel tower in the valley, a short distance up the north side of the burn. Peel towers were small, fortified towers built in Scotland and northern England. They were used for defense during times of conflict, especially against raids.
Changes in Ownership
Over time, much of the land in Kingledoors was rented out or owned by the Clan Tweedie. In 1524, there was a conflict between the Tweedies and the Flemings, which sadly led to the death of the Lord Fleming at that time.
In 1686, William Hay of Drumelzier bought Kingledoors Craig. By 1712, the Tweedies owned Chapel Kingledoors and half of Over Kingledoors. Before he died, William Hay also bought these properties from the Tweedies. His son, Alexander, received a special document from the Crown in 1736, confirming his ownership of the entire Kingledoors property.
The estate then passed through several different owners. These included important people like Sir George Montgomery of Macbiehill and James Tweedie of Quarter. James Tweedie bought back many properties that had previously belonged to the Tweedie family.
Kingledoors Burn
The Kingledoors Burn is a stream that flows through the valley. It has a bed made of gravel. Because of its unique features, this stream has been the subject of several important geographical research papers. Scientists study it to understand how rivers and streams work.
